Shoe-polishing apparatus.



W. H. GAGGINS.

SHOE POLISHING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 7, 1913 1 1 1 0,384, Patented Sefit. 15, 1914.

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WILLIAM H. GAG-GINS, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

SHOE-POLISHING APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

' Patented Sept. 15,1914.

Application filed February 7, 1913. Serial N 0. 746,690.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM H. GAG- GINS, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Philadelphia, county of Philadelphia, and State ofPennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement inShoe-Polishing Apparatus, of which the following is.

a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the.accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

The object of my invention is to provide means tofacilitate thepolishing ofshoes,

and it is intended more especially for home use by those polishingtheirown shoes, although it has features which render its use advantageous byprofessional shoe polishers.

When one attempts to polish his own shoes, without removing them fromthe feet, he necessarily assumes an awkwardposition,

cannot easily maintain the'shoe in fixed pois shown in the accompanyingdrawings, in

which- Figure l is a sideview of the apparatus;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the same; Fig.3 isa partial view of Fig. 1,showing the foot rest support; Fig. 4. is a cross-sectional view of thefoot rest support; Fig. 5 is a detail rear view of the central rollerguides.

The base plate or support a is intended to be secured, preferably byscrews, to any suitable wooden platform (not shown). In the center ofthe base a is an integral upwardly extending socket b in which isconfined a ball 0, which is preferably of rubber or other elasticmaterial. To the ball 0 is attached, in any suitable manner, a foot rest(2. For example, a pin 6, having a shoulder e underlying the foot rest,may be riveted to the foot-rest, and inserted and secured within a holein the ball 0. I

On each side the base-plate a is provided with a pair of orificed ears factingas bearings for a turnable cloth guide, the chief element of whichis the rod or shaft {7 This rod extends forward of the bearings f and onthis forward extension is a rotatable sleeve or roller it held fromsliding longitudinally by a rear collar '2' fixed to the rod and a frontpiece j also fixed to the rod and having a projection which, when theguide is in the position shown in Figs. 1 and 2, extends laterallyoutward. The other part of the rod 9 is bent upward and forward, thencebackward, and thence upward in a somewhat forwardly inclined direction.

This last-named upward extension of the rod is provided with a rotatablesleeve or roller 70 similar to the sleeve h, and. is held fromlongitudinal movement on the rod by fixed collars Z and m, respectivelysimilar to the collars 11 and j, the piece m having a forwardlyextending projection;

. Secured beneath the rear of the foot-rest is a plate it having at thesides orificed ears 0 acting as bearings for. the shafts of rollers 79.

In operation the front of the shoe is placed firmly on the foot rest,the heel resting behind, and being pushed against the rear edge of thefoot rest, this edge being provided with sharp projections 1' whichslightly penetrate the heel and aid in maintaining the foot in fixedrelation to the foot rest. It will be understood that the footrest iscapable of being, moved at any desired angle, so that theposition of thefoot may be changed from time to time without altering the position ofthe shoe relatively to the foot rest.

. When it is desired to polish the shoe with the cloth, the cloth guidesmay be swung into the position shown in Figs. 1 and 2, although it willbe more convenient to move them still farther inwardly so that the uppermembers thereof will rest against the shoe. The position of the guidesfacilitates the application of the cloth strip, which is slipped underthe lower or horizontal member of one guide thence up over the frontofthe shoe and thence down under the lower or horizontal member of theother cloth-guide. The cloth guides are then swung outward so that theupper members assume a horizontal position and rest on the woodensupport (not shown). The ends of the cloth may then be grasped by thehands and moved up and down, without interference with the upper membersof the guide thereby drawing the cloth back and forth over the frontportion of the shoe. The cloth is held from slipping rearward by thefront ears f, while it is held from slipping forward by the projectionsor stops j. Thus the cloth may be manipulated without the necessity ofthe operator bending over into an awkward position. After the frontportion of the shoe is polished, the cloth-guides are again swung up andthe cloth strip, by pulling it forwardly, may be readily disengaged fromthe shoe and cloth guides.

To polish the heel and the rear part of the shoe, the cloth guides beingn approximately the position shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the cloth is passedin front of the upper members and back of the heel, and the ends of thecloth are brought to the rear of the heel and pulled back and forth. Thecloth is held from slippin upward by the projections or stops m and isheld from slipping downward by the adjacent bends in the rods.

The part of the shoe underneath the instep may be polished by passingthe cloth under the rollers p, the ends of the cloth being pulled up anddown.

Having now fully described my invention, what I claim and desire toprotect by Letters Patent is:

1. -A shoe polishing apparatus comprising a foot-rest and a pair ofcloth guides one on each side thereof, each cloth guide comprising alower longitudinally extending cloth-engaging member turnable on itsaxis and an upper cloth-engaging member fixed relatively to thelongitudinally extending member and therefore adapted to be moved intoeither a lateral position or an upwardly extending position.

2. A shoe polishing apparatus comprising a foot-rest and a pair of clothguides one on each side thereof, each cloth guide comprising a rodhaving a lower cloth-engaging portion extending longitudinallyandturnable on its axis beyond its rear end bent successively forwardly,rearwardly and upwardly, said upwardly bent portion forming a secondcloth-engaging member and being adapted, by the turning of thelongitudinally extending portion of the rod, to be moved into alaterally extending position.

3. A shoe polishing apparatus comprisin a foot-rest and a pair of clothguides one on each side thereof, each cloth guide comprising a lowerlongitudinally extending rod member turnable on its axis and a secondrod member fixed relatively to, and extending from the rear of, thelower rod member and angularly inclined relatively thereto and thereforeadapted to be moved into either a lateral position or an upwardlyextending position in the turning of the longitudinally extending rodmember on its axis.

4. A shoe polishing apparatus comprising a foot-rest and a pair of clothguides one on each side thereof, each cloth guide comprising a rodhaving a lower longitudinally extending cloth engaging portion bentbeyond its rear end successively forwardly, rearwardly and upwardly,bearings on which the longitudinally extending portion of the rod isturnable on its axis, a roller sleeved on the longitudinally extendingportion of the rod, in front of said bearings, a projection on thelongitudinally extending portion of the rod in front of said roller, aroller sleeved on the upwardly extending portion of said rod, and aprojection on the rod above the last named roller.

In testimony of which invention, I have hereunto set my hand, atPhiladelphia, on this 5th day of February, 1913.

WILLIAM H. GAGGINS.

Witnesses:

M. M. HAMILTON, E. E. WALL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of latents,

Washington, D. 0.

